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Thursday News Roundup

Lithuania Tribune | Opinion: Would Kennedy say “I am a Catalonian” today?The Scots were recognised as a fully-fledged nation, one that has the same rights as other European nations do. At the same time, most European politicians choose cowardly silence when the same is demanded by Catalonians – an equally ancient, respected and large nation. It suddenly turns out that a principle that applies to one nation is not applicable to another. Once again – all are equal, but some are more equal than others.

BBC | Is Spain inflating the Catalonia souffle?The conservative Popular Party (PP) in power in Madrid under Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has a “recentralising” Spanish-patriotic agenda, and Education Minister Jose Ignacio Wert, has spoken of the need to “espanolizar” [or Spanish-ise] Catalan children.

Financial Times | Defiant Catalan leader relishes referendumThe leader of Catalonia’s grass-roots independence movement has no doubt that voters will have their say on the Spanish region’s political future this Sunday, just as planned. If that means defying the government in Madrid, and ignoring a ruling by Spain’s highest court, then so be it.

NPR | New Generation Of Catalonian Separatists Looks To Future, Not Past
It’s not only [to] change one flag, it’s [to] change all these things that aren’t working now,” he says. “We tried — my mother, my father, their generation, my generation — tried to make good relations with Spain. We tried for 40 years. But it’s not possible to change the political system in Spain. We have the opportunity for change with the independence of Catalonia.”